Southampton Transfer Rumours: Saints pursuing Lille's Sofiane Boufal
As has been the case all summer, strikers are in short supply. While Arsenal’s travails have been the saga of the summer, Manchester United managed to get superstar striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic even before the start of the new season.
The Saints’ summer, on the other hand, had a familiar feeling of players leaving the club. But, this year, their manager, Ronald Koeman left Southampton for Everton, and the Saints’ key players from last year, strikers, Graziano Pelle and Sadio Mane, also left for greener pastures.
Reports from media outlet Football365 state that an opening offer of €14 Million was made for the LOSC Lille attacking midfielder Sofiane Boufal.
Claude Puel has already seen his top goal scorers leave, but now the Frenchman will hope that they can spend the money generated from those sales to get the Moroccan forward.
Boufal is regarded as one of the brightest prospects in French football having scored 11 goals and four assists last season. Having come through the Angers youth system, he made his debut for them at the age of 18 before catching the eye of Lille.
The Moroccan has been with Lille since January 2015, the Moroccan has continued his impressive progress scoring 12 goals in 35 games across all competitions last season. Boufal also won the award for Best African Player in Ligue 1.
A left winger who possesses raw talent, the 22-year-old is currently injured and will only be able to step on to the pitch next month.
However, it is believed that Saints have been tracking the player for quite a while and have now increased their bid. If the Saints do go ahead with the purchase, they will break the club transfer record of £15 Million they spent on Italian striker Dani Osvaldo three years ago.
Puel has also been trying to ward off Manchester United’s interest in his central defender Jose Fonte. If Boufal does arrive, it means that England striker Jay Rodriguez could join fellow Premier League side, West Bromwich Albion on loan.
Southampton, who have already added winger Nathan Redmond and midfielders Jeremy Pied and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg to their squad, they will hope that Boufal can bring the flair quotient to a team which has played some attractive football over the seasons.
Although the Saints have had setbacks in the form of players and coaches moving out, they have relied more on sticking to their policy on youth and ensuring continuity to achieve the club’s objectives.